Razor blade cartridge unit



May 12, 1953 M. c. THOMPSON RAzoR BLADE CARTRIDGE UNIT 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed OCT.. 17, 1947 INVENTOR MARCUS C. THOMPSO ATTORNEY May 12, 1953 Mfc. THOMPSON v 2,637,900

RAZOR BLADE CARTRIDGE UNIT Filed Oct.. 17, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 5i.

Patented May 12, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT F F ICE.

RAZOR BLADE CARTRIDGE'UNIT Marcus C. Thompson, Pasadena, Calif.

Applica'nn October. 17, 1947,` Sera1No..78llA6U (Cl. 3B-402) 17 Claims. l

VThe present-invention relates to razors in general and particularly to razor blade-loading means. More specifically the invention coinprises an improved. lrazorV blade-loading unit into which used blades are ejected by the razor and by which new blades are positioned in the razor.

The safety razor has largely displaced the straight edge as a means of removing the modern mans beard. The inherent advantage from tire standpoint of' safety, and' the advantage of having .a sharp edge at all times lmakes the modern safety razor ,in the opinion oi many a necessity. The safety razor normally comprises a handle to `which is detacliably connected va head, includmgY a cap and a :bed between, which the cutting bla-de is clamped. Dull bladesv are replaced yby d'etacliing the handle from .the head and then separating the cap and the bed. A new blade may then 'be positioned, the head reconnected to tbe handle, and the razor is again ready lor use. The necessity for this assembly and disassembly operation can be viewed as an inherent disadvantage. Additionally there is tliey danger that the lingers will accidentally be cut by edges of the blades during the handling.

in a 'newer type ci razor the blade is seated in 'the head and in displaced by the insertion fromk the side of a new blade from a cartridge in which a plurality of blades are positioned. This` construction has the inherent advantage that it is unnecessary to disassemble the razor .proper in order to displace the old blade and to replace it, 'It iras the disadvantage, however, that the displaced' blade is unprotected and' is permitted to fall to 'the floor lor into the wash` basin from which it must be retrieved.

in the safety razor and blade-loading unit constructed in accordance with the present invention the dull blade is removed' 'by bringing the razor into cooperative relationship with the blade-containing cartridge unit at which time by a simple manipulation the old blade is unseated from the razor and positioned in the unit. By a diderent manipulation., which includes bringing the razor into a new cooperative relationship with the cartridge unit, a new blade is positioned for use in the razor. The entire operation requires no skill and has the inherent advantage that it is not necessary to disasseinble the razor in order to replace the dull blade. lt is characterized by t'ne further advantage that tl'ie worn and dull blade 'is displaced into the blade-containing cartridge so that it is not permitted to fall .onto the floor or other surface to constitute a hazard.

With an appreciation ofy the defectsl of the razors and blade-loading means comprising the prior art it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved razor bladeloading cartridge.

`t is another object or the invention to provide a newy and improved blade removal means for safety razor.

-lStillV another obect of the invention is to provide a blade-containing unit adapted to cooperate with the razor to vdisplace a dull used blade and to position a newsllarpv blade.

Still another object of' the invention is to provide limproved combination safety 'razor and loading means which the dull used blade is removedfrom Athe razor by the cooperative interaction of the razor the neW-blade-carrying means byl which the dull blade `is retained, the newl bla-dc` being positioned by a second cooperative interaction of the razor and the newblade-contain'ing means;

These-and other more specific objects will appear upon reading the following specification and claims and upon considering in connection therewith thev attached drawings to which they relate.

Referringnow tothe drawings'in which a preferred embodiment of `the present invention is illustrated? Figure i is axview in perspective ci the bladecontaining cartridge unit; constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2l is' avertical section through the unit upon the line 2--2 of .Figurel and illustrates the cooperative relationship of the razor and the cartridge unit `in the displacement of a dull blade from the-razor;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 and illustrates they intermediate step of preparing the cartridgev unit for the -ra-zor-loarling operation;

Fig-ure #iy is 1a View showing the cooperative relationshipof theV cartridge unit and the razor duringI the loading operai/tion;`

Figure 5 is a top view ofthe cartridge unit, certain parts being broken away and 'shown section upon the lined-#5 ofFigure 2 Figure 6 isa'view in perspective of the blade.

f eration oiwhich` positions a new blad-e in position to be transferredjto the razor being loaded;

Figure 9 is a view in perspective of the head of the razor constructed in accordance with the present invention; and

Figure 10 is a perspective view of a razor blade adapted to be used in. the razor and in the cartridge unit comprising the present invention.

Referring again to the drawings, a razor con structed in accordance with the present invention is indicated generally by the reference character iii, and the blade-carrying cartridge unit is indicated generally by the reference character ii. Referring rst to the razor I0, it is seen to comprise a handle l2 which may be of any desired diameter, length and general contour to which is attached at one end a head I3. The handle i2 and head i3 may be made of a suitable rigid material, such as metal .or plastic, and as distinguished from the common type safety razor are not separable for the purpose 'of removing and replacing' dull blades. A transverse slot iii is formed in head I3 and seats the end sections i5 and i'l of the bed I3 and cap I3, respectively, which, in the preferred form illustrated, are formed of a single piece of metal folded upon itself. i

In a manner not uncommon in safety razors the bed i8 is provided at its outer edge with a series of aligned teeth 2G which are curved gently downwardly away from the upper surface of the bed to function as a guard to space the bladeproperly relative to the epidermis. Between its ends there is struck from thebed i8 an upwardly and forwardly curving leaf spring 2| adapted to contact the under side of a blade 25 to hold it against the cap i9. curves downwardly and away from the cap as is illustrated clearly in Figure 9 at 22. Cap I9 slopes forwardly and. downwardly toward the bed, being formed at its rear with inwardly extending ears 89a which contact and position the inner edge of a seated blade. At its forward edges cap 9 at its corners has cut-out notches 23 into which extend dogs 33 formed integrally upon the bed I3. The inner faces of dogs 2li are forwardly and outwardly inclined in the manner indicated at 26 .in Figure 9.

The razor blade 25 adapted to cooperate with razor ifi is shown in perspective in Figure 10 and is seen to be fiat and sharpened along one edge 2l. At its ends substantially midway between its sides cut-out notches 22 are formed in the blade and are adapted to receive the dogs 24 formed upon bed i8. Blade 25 is shown operatively positioned in the razor in Figure 9 and dogs 24 are seen to extend into the notches 28, the upper surface of the blade being pressed against the under side of cap i5 by the resilient force exerted by leaf spring 2 I.

The razor constructed in accordance with the present invention is desirable because of its simplicity and because of the ease with which it may be constructed, the entire blade-mounting head being formed integrally of one piece suitably shaped and folded upon itself into the configuration shown. v y v Referring now to the blade-carrying cartridge unit H, that element is seen to comprise an exterior case 3i open at its sides and including end walls 32, a bottom wall 33, and a top wall 34, the latter being shaped as a downwardly facing channel having its own side walls 36 and 37. The interior of casing 3l as dened by the end walls 32 and the bottom wall 33 forms an uninterrupted open-ended passage except for the presence of appcsed inwardly extending shelves or The forward edge of this spring 2| ledges 38 pressed from the end walls 32 leaving side openings 39. There are also struck out from the end walls 32 apposed inwardly iiexed flat leaf springs 4I positioned adjacent one end of each shelf 38 and at a slightly higher level.

Positioned within the cartridge casing 3| and adapted for transverse displacement by sliding in engagement with end walls 32 and bottom wall 33 is a box-like carriage t5 comprising a bottom wall 4l connecting end walls 48 and side walls 49 and 5I. Side wall 49 is formed upon its inner face with two upwardly extending extensions 52, struck from bottom wall 47, which make acute angles with the wall itself and serve as blade retainers as will be described. Side wall 5I is formed with two struck-out leaf springs 53 the ends of which extend inwardly to form detents 54 having inwardly and downwardly sloping upper faces. Wall 5l is also formed with a pressed out central cam section 53 which also functions as a handle by which the carriage 46 can be moved relative to the casing 3 I.

With the cartridge unit in its new relationship a multiplicity of juxtapositioned new blades 25 are positioned in the unit, the upper edges of their notches 23 resting upon the apposed and aligned shelves 33 in the manner illustrated clearly in Figure 7. A curved leaf spring GI, the ends of which abut the interior surface of channel 34, centrally contacts the upper edges of the blades 25 and forces them downwardly against the ledges 3S. Additionally a slidable follower or end plate E2 urges the blades to the left, as viewed in Figures 2, 3 and 4. Plate I52, shown most clearly in Figure 6, is dimensioned similarly to the blade 25 and is provided at its ends with notches 53 which ride upon the ledges 38. A central iiexible curved portion 54 pressed from the body of the plate functions as a spring which at all times urges the blades to the left. With the cartridge unit filled with new blades follower 62 is held against displacement from the ends of shelves 38 by the springs 2| formed in the casing end walls 32 in the manner shown in Figure 3.

The end walls 48 of carriage 43 are formed with integral inwardly flexed, downwardly extending spring elements 58, the lower edges of which are turned inwardly to form supporting lips 59, as is shown most clearly in Figure '7.

The construction of the cartridge unit is completed by a manually-depressible feed element or plunger 66 shown in perspective in Figure 8 and in its ready-to-operate position in Figure 2. It may be formed as an elongated continuous metal band from one side of which extends a shoulder El adapted to receive a manually applied downward force. The element seats slidingly upon the vertical end wall 31 of channel 34 and in its initial and normal position its inner side overlies the end blade 25 which is held against the wall 31 by the action of leaf spring Gli of follower 62. This end blade, it is to be noted, is beyond the end of the supporting ledge l38.

Referring now to Figure 2 in particular, there -is shown a blade-carrying cartridge unit fully loaded with new blades. The carriage 36 has been moved manually to its razor-unloading position and the V-shaped blade carriers 52 are located below that blade 25 positioned at the left side of the series of blades. In Figure 2 the operation of dislocating the used blade from the razor is also indicated. The razor head is advanced until the guard teeth 20 Contact the outer side of the top of the wall 5I so that the latter may enter along said blade from said exposed edge toward said cutting edge until the means to limit displacement on the i'lrst of said razor plates abuts the exposed edge of said blade, said support being adapted to release said blade for withdrawal with said plates upon theirl movement in the reverse direction and after the means to prevent displacement on said second plate has engaged said blade during the movement of said plates.

2. The construction recited in claim 1 characterized in that said carrier includes a blade magazine adapted to contain a plurality of blades, and in that means are provided to displace a blade from said magazine and to position it in said support.

3. The construction recited in claim l characterized in that said carrier includes a blade magazine adapted to contain a plurality of blades in parallelism, and in that manually operable means are provided to transfer said blades sequentially from said magazine to said support.

4. A safety razor blade-feeding-and-receiving unit comprising a casing formed with bladesupporting means, a manually displaeeable carriage slidable in said casing relative to said blade-supporting means and including bladereceiving means to remove a dull blade from a razor and blade-feeding means to insert a new blade in a razor, characterized in that the shifting of said carriage from a blade-receiving posif tion to a blade-feeding position eiects the transfer of a dull blade from the blade-receiving means to said blade-supporting means.

5. The construction recited in claim 4 characterzed in that manually operable means 4are pr'ol.

vided to transfer a new blade from said bladesupporting means to said blade-feeding means.

6. The construction recited in claim 5 characterized in that said blade-feeding means is positioned to receive said new blade from said bladesupporting means with said carriage positioned in its blade-receiving position.

7. A safety razor blade-feeding-and-receiving unit comprising a casing formed with open sides and with parallel shelves adapted to engage the notched ends of razor blades extended therebetween, a spring below the top of said casing to abut the upper edges of blades to hold them in position on said shelves, a depending wall limiting the movement of blades on said shelves in one direction, and leaf springs carried by walls of said casing limiting said movement in the opposite direction; a carriage displaceabie relative to said casing and including blade-receiving means at one end of said shelves to remove a blade from a razor and blade-feeding means at the opposite end of said shelves to feed blades into a razor, said blade-receiving means being aligned with said shelves and adapted upon movement of said carriage in one direction to move a blade which it carries past said leaf springs and into said shelves.

8. The construction recited in claim 'l characterized in that said blade-feeding means are positioned in one position of said carriage to receive a blade from a series of blades supported by said shelves, and manually operable means to shift said blade from said series to said blade-feeding means.

9. The construction recited in claim 8 characterized in that said blade-feeding means is movable upon movement of said carriage from its blade-receiving position to a position to deliver a blade to a safety razor.

10. A construction to load a razor of the type comprising iirst and second cooperating plates adapted to clamp a cutting blade therebetween and resiliently opposing separation, the rst of said plates being provided with means to limit the displacement of a blade being positioned, and the second of said plates being provided with means to prevent the displacement of said blade in the opposite direction after it has been positioned, comprising: a blade carrier including a support releasably supporting a blade against unintentional displacement and exposing the edge of said blade opposite the cutting edge, a spreading element extending rigidly adjacent one side of said blade to eiect the spreading of the cooperating plates of said razor as they are advanced along said blade from said exposed edge toward said cutting edge until the means to limit displacement on the first of said razor plates abuts the exposed edge of said blade, said spreader being constructed and arranged as to enable the means to prevent blade displacement on said second plate to engage said blade, said support releasing said blade for withdrawal'with said plates upon their movement in the reverse direction and after the means to prevent displacement on said second plate has engaged said blade during the movement of said plates.

1l. A construction to load a razor of the type comprising rst and second cooperating plates adapted to clamp a cutting blade therebetween and resiliently opposing separation, the iirst of said plates being provided with dogs arranged to abut the edge of said blade opposite the cutting edge, and the second of said plates being provided with dogs to engage seats on said blade to prevent said blade being displaced from the dogs of said rst plate after the blade has been positioned, comprising: a blade carrier including a spreading element extending rigidly adjacent one side of said blade to effect the spreading of the cooperating plates of said razor as they are advanced along said blade from said exposed edge toward said cutting edge until dogs of said iirst plate abut the exposed edge of said blade, said spreader being slotted to enable the dogs of said second plate to engage said blade, said support releasing said blade for Withdrawal with said plates upon their movement in a reverse direction and after the dogs on said second plate have engaged said blade.

12. In combination with a razor of the type comprising first and second cooperating plates adapted to clamp a cutting blade therebetween and resiliently opposing separation, the first of said plates being provided with means to limit the displacement of a blade being positioned, and the second of said plates being provided with means to prevent the displacement of said blade in the opposite direction after it has been 4positioned, a razor blade carrier including a support releasably supporting a blade against unintentional displacement and exposing the edge of said blade opposite the cutting edge, a spreading element to eiect the spreading of the cooperating plates of said razor as they are advanced along said blade from said exposed edge toward said cutting edge until the means to limit displacement on the first of said razor plates abuts the exposed edge of said blade, said support being adapted to release said blade for withdrawal with said plates upon their movement in the reverse direction and after the means to prevent displacement on said second plate has engaged said blade during the movement of said plates.

13, In combination with a razor of the type comprising rst and second cooperating plates adapted to clamp a cutting blade therebetween and resiliently opposing separation, the iirst of said plates being provided with means te limit the displacement of a blade being positioned, and the second of said plates being provided with means to prevent the displacement of said blade in the opposite direction after it has been positioned, a razor blade carrier including a Support releasably supporting a blade against unintentional displacement and exposing the edge of said blade opposite the cutting edge, a spreading element extending rigidly adjacent one side of said blade to eiect the spreading of the cooperating plates `of said razor as they are advanced alongl said bladeV from said exposed edge toward said cuttingedge until the means to limit displacement on the first of said razor plates abuts the exposed edge of said blade, said spreader being constructed and arranged as to enable the means to prevent blade displacement on said'second .plate to engage said blade, said support releasing said blade for Withdrawal With said plates upon their movement in the reverse direction and after the means to prevent displacement on said second plate has engaged said blade during the movement of said plates.

14. In combination with a razor of the type comprising ilrst and second cooperatingplates adapted to clamp a cutting blade therebetween and resiliently opposing separation, the `first of said plates being provided with dogs arranged to abut the edge of said blade opposite the cutting edge, and the second of said plates being provided With dogs to engage seats on said blade to prevent said blade being displaced from the dogs of said'rst plate after the blade has been positioned, a blade carrier including a spreading element extending rigidly adjacent one side of said blade to effect the spreading of the cooperating plates of said razor as they are advanced along said blade from said exposed edge toward said cutting edge until dogs of said first plate abut the exposed edge of said blade, said spreader being slotted to enable the dogs of said second plate to engage said blade, said sup-port releasing said blade for withdrawal with said plates upon their movement in a reverse direction and after 10 the dogs on said second plate have engaged said blade.

15. A container for safety razor blades comprising a magazine adapted to containda plurality of blades, a carriage mounted for` limited displacement relative to said magazine and including a blade receiver to remove blades from a safety razor and to feed said blades tdsaid magazine and a blade supplier to receive-blades from said magazine and to supply saidblades to a safety razor, characterized in that-in one position of said carriage said blade receiver is positioned to receive a blade from a razor and said blade supplier is positioned to receive a blade from said magazine, and in that inarsefcond position of said carriage said blade supplier is positioned to supply a blade previously vreceived from said magazine to a razor brought into'cooperative relationship thereto.

16. The construction recited in claim 15 characterized in that said magazine is provided with a manually operable blade displacertofdisplace a blade into said supplier with the latter positioned in said one position of said carriage.

17. The construction recited in claim 15 characterized in that the blade receivenis aligned with said magazine and in that 'a blade carried by said receiver is transferred into said magazine upon the movement of said carriage from said one position to said second position.,

MARCUS C. THOMPSON.

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